Controller



Patented May 9, I899.

(Application filed Feb. 20, 1899.)

(No llodal.)

2 Sheets-Sheet -l.

i as

TERS co. PHOTOAJTHQ, WASHINGTON n c No. 624,7l9.

Patented may 9, I899. T. van ZWEIG'B-ER-GK.

G 0 N T R 0 L L E B (Application filed Feb. 20, 1699.

2 Sheets$heet 2.

(No Model.)

REvERsr/w'.

Q 0 S N m m m m 4 s 7 8 6 5 5 I 6 m 5 m s u E 5 N HRELLEL RESISTANCE.

WITNESSES. fi 6%.? M

m: uo'nms wzrzas co, noraumou wAsHmG oN. o, c,

3 3, and at 4, respectively, of Fig. 1.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THORSTEN VON ZYVEIGBERGK, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

CONTROLLER.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent No. 624,719, dated Ma 9,1899-.

Application filed February 20, 1899. Serial No. 706,240. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, THORSTEN VON ZWEIG- BERGK, a subject of the King ofSweden and Norway, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga andState of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inControllers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention is for an efficient and novel form of controller adapted togovern motors by connecting them in series or parallel and cutting outresistance, its object being to segregate the controller-segments ontotwo separate shafts, a series and a parallel, adapted to be operated insuccession by one lever or handle. Thus the disadvantages which havehitherto attended the construction of single-cylinder series parallelcontrollers are avoided. I The invention consists in part in thecombination of a series rheostatic governing-cylinder, a parallelrheostatic governingcylinder, an operating-lever, and a suitableconnection between the lever and the two cylinders such that themovement of the lever may operate the two cylinders successively, eithercylinder being locked out of use when the other is in use.

Another feature of my invention is a very simple and efficientinterlocking mechanism between the governing part of the controller andthe reversing-switch, which prevents the operation of thereversing-switch when the current is on and the operation of thegoverning-cylinders when the reversing-switch is at the off position.

The specific form of my controller shown in the drawings,which is thebest embodiment at present known to me, is also of my invention.

In the drawings,Figure 1 is afront elevation, partly sectional, of mycontroller, the front casing and the operating-handles being removed.Figs. 2, 3, and at are horizontal sections of the controller, taken onthe lines 2 2, Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating the connections andelectrical operation of the controller; and Fig. 6 is a rear elevationof the interlocking mechanism between the reversing-switch and thegoverning part of the controller, beinga vertical section on the line 66 of Fig. 2 look ing toward the front of the controller.

Referring to the parts by letters, A represents the frame of thecontroller. Projecting forward from the back of this frame are the websa a a which, with suitable cap-plates secured to them, constitute thebearings for the different shafts of the controller. The series cylinderand the parallel cylinder are constructed exactly alike, except in theelectrical grouping of the contact segments caused by interposedinsulating-washers between hubs of consecutive segments.

S represents the shaft of the series cylinder, and P that of theparallel cylinder, each of these shafts being journaled in the bearingsa a. Surrounding these shafts are insulating-sleeves s 19, around whichare the hubs of the contact-segments s to s and p to 19 011 the seriescylinder the segments 3 to s are electrically connected together in onegroup, the segments .9 and 5 in another group, and the segments :9 and sin the third group, the separation being caused by the interposedinsulating-washers s and On the parallel cylinder the segments 19 to pare electrically connected into one group and the remaining segmentsinto a second group, the two groups being separated by theinsulating-washer p Secured to the upper ends of the shafts S and P arethe gears S and P, which mesh with the gear H on a shaft H, which isjournaled in the bearings a and a and has at its upper end a definitiveshape which the operating-lever is adapted to engage. The gears H, S,and P are constructed in a peculiar shape to attain the desired result,which is that the rotation of the gear H from the off position shallfirst rotate the gear S and then become disengaged from that gear androtate the gear P, the gears S and P each remaining locked when theother is moved.

I accomplish the above result in the following manner: The gear-teeth onthe gears P and S extend only part way around the circumference,preferably about half-way, and the gear H, which is of larger diameterthan the other two, has only sufficient gear-teeth to engage with theteeth on either of the other gears. Beyond the gear-teeth on the gear Hthat gear continues its periphery H smoothly and (except at H and H nearthe end of the gear-teeth, where the radius is less) concencentrically,and the surfaces of the gears P and S, which are adapted to engage withsuch concentric surface of the gear H, is concaved, as shown at P and Sand S As these surfaces are adapted to fit snugiy against the smoothsurface H of the gear H, the gears P and S thereby become locked.

Fig. 3 shows the parts in the off position, the position of theoperating-handle being indicated by the broken center line. As thathandle is moved in a right-hand direction the teeth on the gear H meshwith the teeth on the gear S, and the surface H of decreasing radiusreleases the gear S, and the rotation following brings the segmentscarried by the series cylinder into engagement with the contact-fingers,which are electrically connected with the motors, resistance, andreversingswitch.

In the form shown in the drawings three series positions areprovided,which couple the motors in series with the whole resistance,with a part of the resistance, and without any resistance, respectively.These positions are numbered 1, 2, and 3 in the diagram. The right-handrotation of the operating-handle after the third position is reachedcauses the series cylinder to pass out of contact entirely with thecontact-fingers O, and thereafter the surface S comes into engagementwith the smooth surface H of the gear H, the surfaces H allowing it topass,) and the gear S becomes locked. Thereafter the teeth of the gear Hmesh with the teeth of the gear P, and a continued rotation turns theparallel cylinder through the positions shown in the diagram as 4, 5,and 6, connecting the motors in parallel with the whole resistance, withpart of the resistance, and without any resistance, respectively, thecontact-segments on the parallel cylinder engaging with thecontact-fingers O, which are connected in the same manner as thecontact-fingers C. When the current is to be shut off, theoperatinghandle is moved in the left-hand direction and the gear P isrotated back about half a rotation until the surface P engages with theconcentric surface H of the gear H and becomes locked, and thereafterthe teeth on the gear 11 engage with the teeth on the gear S and rotateit back into the position shown in Fig. 3, in this position bothcylinders being locked.

K represents the shaft of the reversingswitch, which is journaled in thebearings -a a and carries a series of segments, one

longitudinal row of which is individually insulated and alternatelyconnected, the other row of which overhangs the hubs of consecutivesegments without contacting with them. This construction is a usual onefor reversingswitches and operates to establish the connections betweenthe armatures and fields of the motors in either of two directions,accord ing to which longitudinal row of segments is in contact with thecontact-fingers C Secured to the shaft K, preferably by being formedintegral with a sleeve K, surrounding the shaft, is a notchedindicatorplate K which is adapted to normally hold the shaft in its off,ahead, or reverse positions by reason of the roller E, carried by thelever E and engaging with notches in the indicator plate. This roller isdrawn toward the plate by the rod e, at the rear end of which is formeda knife-edge head a which stands within a recess E in the rear side ofthe lever and engages with the front wall of the recess. The spring esurrounds the rod 6 and bears at its inner end againsta washer 6 whichlies against the front side of a web a, integral with the web a andextending downward therefrom. The force of the spring 6 is adjusted bythe nuts e screwing onto the front end of the rod 0. The web 0.isintegral at its lower end with the web a which extends horizontallybackward and joins the back plate of the frame. The pin E on which thelever E is journaled, takes into the two horizontal webs a and a Securedto the shaft H is the indicatorwheel H taking into an opening D in thelever D, and engaging with the roller D, carried by that lever. Thislever is journaled on the pin D carried by the horizontal webs a and aand is drawn toward the indicatorwheel by a spring cl, surrounding andgiving a thrust to rod (Z, which has on its rear end knifeedges (Zengaging the lever D, the spring cl being adjustably confined betweenthe washer (i against the front of the web a and the nuts (1 The lever Dhas at its extreme end toward the lever E a toe D which when the partsare in the off position stands in front of a toe E on the lever E. Inthis position the operating-handle on the shaft H cannot be moved, forthe increasing radius of the detent-wheel H must force the lever Drearward, and its toe D engaging with the toe E prevents this. When,however, the reversing-switch is thrown to either the ahead or thereverse position, the roller E comes into a notch in the indicator-plateK of less radius, and the toe E thus moves away from the toe Dsufficiently to clear it. Now if the current is turned on by therotation of the shaft H the lever D is moved rearward, and the toe Dcomes opposite the end of the toe E and thus standing in the path ofthat toe prevents the movement of the lever E, and hence the rotation ofthe reversingswitch. It will thus be seen that the same levers whichcarry the rollers for the indicator-wheels also constitute thisinterlocking mechanism, which is a very simple,cheap, and satisfactoryarrangement.

The electrical operation of the controller need not be specificallydescribed, but will be apparent from Fig. 5, wherein R R R rep resentthe lines to the governing resistance;

ICC

U and V, lines from the governing-cylinders to the reversing-switch; F Fand F F lines from the field of the first and second motors,respectively, to the governing-cylinders; G, the line to the ground, andA, A A, F F A A and A the lines from the reversingswitch to the armatureand field of the two motors. The connection of the contact-fingers O andO are exactly the same, and those of the contact-fingers O are a usualarrangement for reversing-switches.

Having described my invention, I claim- 1. In a controller, incombination, two governing-cylinders, one adapted to couple motors'inseries, the other adapted to couple motors in parallel, anoperating=lever, and a suitable connection between the lever and the twocylinders such that the movement of the lever in one direction from theoif position may operate the cylinders successively, substantiall y asdescribed.

2. In a controller, in combination, two governing-cylinders, one adaptedto couple motors in series the other adapted to couple motors inparallel, an operating-lever, and a suitable connection between thelever and the two cylinders such that the movement of the lever mayoperate the cylinders successively, and means for locking eithercylinder when the other is at an operative position and for locking bothcylinders when they are both off, substantially as described.

3. In a controller, in combination, a series rheosiatic cylinder, aparallel rheostatic cylinder, an operating-shaft, a gear on said shaft,gears on the cylinders with which the gear on the shaft may mesh, therebeing means for causing the disengagement of the gear on the shaft fromthat on the series cylinder, and the engagement with that on theparallel cylinder in the movement from the series to the parallelpositions, substantially as described.

4:. In a controller, in combination, a series cylinder, and a parallelcylinder, each having a segment of a gear secured to it, anoperating-shaft, a segment of a gear secured to it, the teeth on thelast-mentioned gear engaging in the movement from off position firstwith the teeth on the gear of the series cylinder and by movement in thesame direction after passing out of engagement therewith engaging withthe teeth on the gear of the par allel cylinder, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a controller, the gear H having teeth for a portion of itsperiphery and having a concentric smooth surface H beyond said teeth andsurfaces H and H of smaller radius near the ends of the gear-teeth, thetwo gears P and S having teeth which are adapted to engage successivelywith the teeth on the gear H, said gear 8 having two concave surfaces SS at either extremity of its teeth which are adapted to en gagewith theconcentric surface H and lock the gear S in either of two positions, andthe gear P having the surface P which is adapted to engage with thesurface H and lock the gear P when the gear S is locked in one of itspositions, in combination with means for rotating the gear H, andcontrollin gcylinders adapted to be rotated by the gears S and P,substantially as described.

7. In a controller, a shaft I-I adapted to operate agoverning-controller, a notched indi cator-plate H secured to saidshaft, a lever D, a roller D carried by said lever, a spring drawingsaid roller toward the indicator-plate, in combination with a shaft Kadapted to operate the reversing-switch, an indicator-plate K carriedthereby, a lever E, a roller E carried by said lever and adapted toengage with the indicator-plate K, said lever E having a toe E whichwhen the reversing-switch is at the off position stands behind andprevents the movement of a lever D, the end of the lever D when thelever E allows it movement being moved by the indicator-plate H whenturned to an operative position, opposite the end of the toe E and inthe path thereof, whereby the reversing-switch is locked, substantiallyas described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

THORSTEN VON -ZWEIGBERGK. WVitnesses:

ALBERT H. BATES, PHILIP E. KNOWLTON.

